Exposure to religion in my youth was by way of a brief dose of sunday school at the local Unitarian church. The point there, evidently, was to learn about other religions and turtles. If a point was being made, I missed it. When Catholic friends of mine came over for the weekend I would accompany them to the closest Catholic church and we would endure the mass together, the experience leaving us just as clueless as the moment before we walked in.
A girlfriend of @Rob briefly worked for the English bike company Raleigh in Boston, Massachusetts. These were the Jan Raas, Didi Thurau, Ti-Raleigh years, where Raleigh made beautiful bikes and their team was one of the dreadnaughts of professional cycling. I was visiting this friend at the Raleigh offices, which to my eyes seemed like any other office: fluorescent lighting, linoleum tiled floors, men in coats and ties. It was uncontaminated by bicycles or red and yellow kits. This place was not cool. My friend ushered me into a nondescript room, pulled out an enormous sliding drawer and showed me something she knew was cool.
In this sliding drawer was a complete set of Campagnolo bike tools, all set in blue foam cut outs, each tool nestled in its perfectly shaped place. I didn’t fall to my knees but I must have gasped. Each tool was a work of art: form and function in unison. Each tool designed for a specific task in the wedding of components to frame. The tools had a uniform silver finish. There were facing and chasing tools with beautifully milled cutting teeth of high speed steel. I’m serious about reverence here. I had never seen anything like this. The seeds to my Italophile religion were sown. I was already a devout fan of the components but did the tools have to look this fantastic? What did this say about a company? To me it said-these tools are designed and made to make sure Campagnolo components work perfectly on any frame. What goes into the tools goes into everything else. The passion, the design, the tools and the components are one. Perhaps the intention was never there to make cool looking tools, maybe it was just a by-product of making cool looking components. What else could they do?
I had found my religion. I never needed the complete tool set, I was never a professional bike mechanic. I do own a few civilian Campa tools: some cone wrenches, the peanut butter wrench, a T-handle wrench, a 10-speed chain tool. These are beautiful tools. Park makes functional tools, no one would say they are beautiful. Why make a functional tool beautiful? Is a beautiful tool a better tool? It is when one is making a living wielding them. Pride in your tools reflects pride in your work.
I was going to write that those days are over, adding beauty adds cost and the bottom line is everything now. Then I remembered my Lezyne pedal wrench. It is functional as it removes pedals without impaling knuckles onto greasy chainrings (and opens beer bottles) but it is beautiful because it has a wide smooth machined aluminum handle bolted onto the body of the wrench. It lacks the refined industrial design of a Campagnolo tool but it is beautiful in its own way.
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@Ron Yep, Went out and bought the tools to change bearings on Powertorque crank cos I had a click on each pedal stroke.
Changed the bearing and it was still there. Turns out the freehub needed greasing is all. Why that should only click only on a left pedal stroke I haven`t worked out, (unless its to do with frame flex). The most expensive greasing I've ever done.
Still I have the tools now and tools are never wasted.
@Deakus
Sorry dude but it's your own fault. First of all you decide you want to have Campagnolo and now you complain that they did you wrong.Then you bought a bike without knowledge what BB system it uses and how to service it and you moan that you don't have tools to service it.It's a very easy operation if you know what you're doing of course.
You in England right. Ribble have UT FC090 Power Torque crank tool for 12 GBP.You can use any puller that is available on the market as long as it has the right size to grab the crank and push against it .And then 14 mm HEX to tighten the crank arm .
When Power Torque was introduced all I had to get to a workshop was a UT FC 090 tool and that's it.All other tools I already had as pullers are used for bearing repairs and replacements and 14 mm Hex is a common tool.
Also PT cups are different than UT cups so make sure you have the right one for the chainset you're installing.You have to use PT cups with a PT chainset. I doubt very much you have Italian thread BB so make sure you are turning the cups in the right direction.
On your own you decided to go with Campagnolo so I'm afraid you should deal with it.Either that or there is always Sram and Shimano-in that order.
Every time I see a Campa tool I'm immediately transported back to Freewheeling Bicycles in San Marcos, TX. it was the mid 80's... The shop was full of italian and french bikes, wool & lycra (lycra- not coolmax or any other high tech mat'l) jerseys hung from racks and full complement of Campa tools hung in the repair shop in back. Not to mention the smell of white lithium grease and cutting fluid met you at the door as you walked in. My first racing bike, a Gianni Motta with Italian Flag paint job, was lovingly threaded, reamed and pressed by those fabulous tools made by Campagnolo. Great memories and great article.... Thanks Gianni!
@TommyTubolare
+1, well said.
@Deakus 2013 Campagnolo book is a good thing to study.
Anyone looking to acquire a Campagnolo UT-CN200 10s HD-Link tool (Ebay) at 50.00 and free shipping anywhere. Includes spare pin but no instructions. Won it unexpectedly on Ebay and already have another.
@unversio I could use one. I'll ask @frank to forward an email to you.
@Nate Thanx Nate. It is done and you should have it one week.
@TommyTubolare Any wariness about mixing an older Ultra-Drive cassette [new] with a current Ergopower Power-Shift drivetrain? Record UD [11-21] 10s
@unversio Thank you. I will no longer need to hang my head in embarrassment at not having the right tool for the job.